PBP Commentary

Coming up we have a middleweight MMA rules bout between Michel Rodalgo (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class) and Frank Esposito (ranked 0 p4p, 0 weight class). Rodalgo comes to the cage accompanied by Ace of Spades - By Motorhead. Over to our ring announcer for the fighter introductions!

Rodalgo
vs
Esposito

172 cm
34
175 lbs
23 - 14 - 0

178 cm
33
175 lbs
36 - 13 - 0

Abu Dhabi Champ
World class boxer
Insanely flexible

Good wrestler
World class MT
Good gas tank

Reaper Combatwear
Fighters First Nutrition Amsterdam 160

Reaper Combatwear

Ladies and gentlemen. This fight is 3 rounds, in the middleweight division.
Introducing the fighter to my left, fighting out of the red corner.
With a record of 23 - 14 - 0, fighting out of Hilo, Michel Rodalgo!
And introducing the fighter to my right, fighting out of the blue corner.
With a record of 36 - 13 - 0, fighting out of Amsterdam, Frank Esposito!
The judges for this bout are Donald Grub, Sam Margolis and James Glass.

The bell rings for round one and we are underway!
Esposito ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Rodalgo throws a hard body shot but it just misses.
A chopping leg kick lands by Esposito.
Rodalgo scores with a nice strike.
Esposito lands with a thumping leg kick.
Esposito throws a low kick but it's checked well by Rodalgo.
Esposito misses with a wild body shot.

Rodalgo looking to shoot here. He's gone for it and he's landed a takedown into side control! Oh, that's bad for Esposito!
Esposito prevents Rodalgo from moving into mount.
Esposito parries the strikes from Rodalgo easily there. Rodalgo is wary of posturing up too much because it might enable Esposito to escape.
Esposito is looking for a sweep.
Rodalgo working the ground and pound but he's contacting the mat, not the fighter.
Rodalgo working away.
Rodalgo cracks Esposito with an elbow. That is naaassty.
Wooooo! Give it up for these two warriors! They are putting on a show!
Rodalgo tries to cartwheel into mount but he doesn't manage it.
Esposito is trying to improve his position.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Esposito regains half guard.
Esposito moves into full guard.
Rodalgo trying to control the position from guard on top but Esposito is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Esposito pulls Rodalgo in close to prevent any damage.
Rodalgo throws an elbow that misses. Esposito uses the momentum to reverse the position. He's now in Rodalgo's guard. Nice move by Esposito!

Rodalgo is looking for a triangle but Esposito pushes his legs off easily.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Esposito trying to control the position from guard on top but Rodalgo is wriggling around, looking for whatever he can.
Rodalgo is trying to control the position from the bottom.
Rodalgo is pulling down on Esposito's head. It's preventing any offense from Esposito, at least for the moment.
Esposito must be cautious of submissions here, given that his opponent has the superior Jiu Jitsu.
Rodalgo trying to control the position.
Esposito slows down the pace of the fight for a moment. He'll need to remain active if he doesn't want to see the fight stood back up.

The referee decides to stand the fighters back up, due to lack of activity on the part of Michel Rodalgo.
Esposito stuns Rodalgo with a nice body shot, before stepping back out of range.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Esposito moves his head to the side to avoid a jab but walks straight into a cross.
Rodalgo misses with a looping right.
Rodalgo darts in and out, connecting with a jab.
Esposito tests Rodalgo's chin there with a solid looking shot.
Rodalgo misses with a takedown attempt. He shot from a bit too far out.
Rodalgo scores with a jab to the body.
Rodalgo throws a decent looking leg kick but it doesn't land clean.
Esposito pivots, looking for a leg kick but Rodalgo is out of range and Esposito settles back down.
Esposito is moving around nicely and scores here with a single head shot.
Esposito scoring well with a low kick there.
Esposito throws a nice outside leg kick.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Esposito tries a head kick but it misses.
Rodalgo misses with a looping right.
Rodalgo chopped to the floor by a nice leg kick but he springs right back up before Esposito can pounce on him.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
An inside leg kick from Rodalgo misses.
A solid leg kick lands there for Esposito.
Esposito throws a hook but Rodalgo avoids it easily.
Rodalgo throws a decent looking leg kick but it doesn't land clean.
Esposito avoids the body shot from Rodalgo.
The fighters circling - Rodalgo throws out the jab but it was never going to land.
Esposito takes a swing at Rodalgo's ribcage but misses.
A nice leg kick lands there from Esposito.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Esposito lands a nice looking kick to the body. Rodalgo takes a step back to recover.
Esposito tries to land with a swinging hook to the body but Rodalgo was well out of range. Poor timing from Esposito.
Esposito stuffs the takedown attempt from Rodalgo. Rodalgo gets slowly back to his feet.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

A close round but Frank Esposito will probably get the nod.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business.

Esposito is looking to score with low kicks.
Esposito lands a leg kick. The shin dug right into the meat of the thigh.
Esposito throws a leg kick but Rodalgo checks it.
Esposito ducks under an overhand right and circles away with a smile on his face.
Esposito throws a leg kick but he was too far away and it doesn't land.
Rodalgo thows a left - swing and a miss!
A swing and a miss from Rodalgo.
Rodalgo misses the shot to the body.
Esposito uses good footwork to avoid the strikes from Rodalgo.
Esposito throws a low kick but Rodalgo moves out of range easily.
Esposito throws a low kick but it's checked well by Rodalgo.
Esposito misses with a straight left.
Rodalgo swings and misses with a hook to the body.
Rodalgo misses with a wild body shot.
Esposito wants to land a leg kick but Rodalgo is out of range.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Rodalgo throws a body punch but Esposito moves out of range.
Rodalgo works the jab nicely.
Esposito scores with a nice strike.
Esposito has his hands up protecting his head but a hook from Rodalgo finds it's way round the side to connect with Esposito's head.
Rodalgo misses with a right hand
and Esposito counters with a thumping low kick.
Esposito throws a nice inside leg kick.
Rodalgo has his front leg slapped to the side - a nice low kick landing there from Esposito.
Frank Esposito seems to be getting the better of the standup.
Rodalgo lunges in with an uppercut that skims his opponent's chin.
Rodalgo lands with a good body shot.
Esposito moves his head to the side to avoid a jab but walks straight into a cross.
Rodalgo moves out of range of the leg kick from Esposito.
Frank Esposito is looking to keep the fight on the feet at all costs.
Esposito connects with a leg kick. He turned his hip over nicely there.
Esposito lands a pitter patter jab to the forehead of his opponent.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
Rodalgo misses the shot to the body.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Rodalgo scores with a shot to the body.
Rodalgo tries to land a front kick but Esposito steps back. That was a bit too telegraphed.
Esposito lands with a nice body punch.
Esposito tries to clinch but fails miserably

and Rodalgo counters with a nice double leg into side control. Esposito won't be happy with that.
Esposito is looking for a sweep.
An elbow from Rodalgo crashes against the mat.
Esposito wants to control but Rodalgo postures up.
The fighters are pressed up against the cage, both looking to find a bit of space to work.
Esposito is trying to get back to half guard.
The ref warns both fighters not to hold the cage as they work up against the meshing.
Esposito parries the strikes from Rodalgo easily there. Rodalgo is wary of posturing up too much because it might enable Esposito to escape.
Esposito wants to control but Rodalgo postures up.
Rodalgo lands a knee to the body and follows it up with some ground and pound to the head. That will wear Esposito down.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Esposito defending against the ground and pound.
Rodalgo tries to cartwheel into mount but he doesn't manage it.
Rodalgo lands a knee to the body and a forearm to the face.
Rodalgo creates some space and throws a big elbow, but Esposito sees it coming and moves his head just enough to avoid the strike.
Esposito tries to buck Rodalgo off but Rodalgo is having none of it.
Esposito has one of Rodalgo's arms on lockdown, trying to prevent him from doing any damage.
Rodalgo grinds an elbow into Esposito's temple.
Esposito holding on.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Esposito tries to improve position but can't.
Rodalgo working the ground and pound but Esposito is defending the strikes.
Rodalgo misses with the ground and pound.
Esposito is positioning himself to get back to half guard.
Rodalgo postures up a little and throws a couple of hammerfists but they don't connect properly.
Esposito is trying to get back to half guard.
Fantastic stuff here - a very entertaining period of action, which has drawn cheers from the crowd.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Rodalgo landing a few strikes.
Esposito manages to work his way to half guard, despite Rodalgo's best efforts.
And that’s the end of the round – the fighters go back to their corners.

That was a close second round but I would say that Michel Rodalgo will probably get the nod.
That's the end of the round. The referee orders the cornermen out of the cage so we can get back down to business. Let's hear some noise people - this is the final round!

Rodalgo throws a hook to the body but it doesn't connect.
Esposito wants to land a leg kick but Rodalgo is out of range.
Esposito tries to clinch up against the cage, rushing in to close the distance. Rodalgo manages to break the clinch and circles back to the middle of the mat.
Esposito slips a jab from Rodalgo.
Rodalgo misses with a wild body shot.
Esposito tries to score with an inside leg kick but telegraphs it and Rodalgo is able to avoid easily.
Esposito on the wrong end of a decent looking cross there.
Rodalgo jabs away that one connects to the head of his opponent.
Rodalgo swings away but doesn't land with a series of punches.
Rodalgo avoids the head kick by Esposito.
Rodalgo throws a nice outside leg kick.
Rodalgo ducks under a wild hook from Esposito.
Esposito slips under a jab from Rodalgo.
Rodalgo misses with a double jab
and Esposito counters with a kick to the head that grazes his opponent. Rodalgo is lucky that one didn't land flush.

That's one minute gone in the round.
Esposito ducks under a wild hook from Rodalgo.
Esposito moves into range and lands a nice leg kick.
Rodalgo cracks Esposito with a right hand to the side of the head.
Esposito fakes a couple of low kicks, before throwing one on the third attempt. It connects and Rodalgo has to reset his feet before getting ready to engage.
Esposito tries to clinch up.
Rodalgo dips down and scores with a jab to the body.
Good shot there by Esposito.
Rodalgo throws a body punch but Esposito moves out of range.
Esposito takes a shot right to the liver - Bas would have been proud of that punch.
Rodalgo fails miserably with a takedown attempt.
Rodalgo just misses with a punch to the body.

Rodalgo feints and as Esposito raises his hands in defense, Rodalgo changes levels and drives through with a takedown into guard.
Michel Rodalgo overall seems to be getting the better of the ground position in the fight so far.
We've seen a great period of action over the last minute or so - credit to both fighters for going all out!
Rodalgo pressing down on his opponent's thigh, looking to pass guard. Esposito is keeping the position for now.

That's two minutes gone in the round.
Esposito looking for a sweep. Not yet Esposito, not yet.
Esposito is trying to control the position but Rodalgo postures up.
Esposito is in a good position here but he's just trying to control... And he's not even managing to do that successfully.
Rodalgo working some ground and pound from guard but it's not doing any damage.
Rodalgo throws a big elbow that misses.
The referee must be thinking about standing these guys back up.
Rodalgo is fighting to break Esposito's control of his arms but Esposito is doing a good job of controlling the position at the moment.

The ref calls for a clean break and stands the fighters back up. Frank Esposito wasn't active enough on the ground.
Rodalgo on the wrong end of a nice jab.
Esposito keeping his hands up high there, blocking the jab from Rodalgo.
Esposito takes a thudding leg kick, right into the meat of the thigh.
Esposito misses with a kick to the body.

That's three minutes gone in the round.
Esposito showing good head movement there, avoiding the strikes from Rodalgo.
Esposito scores with the left hand. Rodalgo knows he should have avoided that one.
Rodalgo avoids a kick to the body.
Esposito lands a head shot.
Oooooooooooh, not good. A low kick from Esposito lands where it shouldn't have, right in the... well, you know what he did? He kicked him in the penis. He's injured, injured bad. The referee sends both fighters to their corners and Rodalgo has 5 minutes to recover. He's OK now though... a thumbs up from Rodalgo and we're back underway with a touch of gloves.
Rodalgo shoots for a takedown but Esposito saw that one coming a mile off and avoided it easily.
A chopping leg kick lands by Esposito.
Rodalgo takes one to the chin there.
Esposito lands with a shot to the body.
Esposito swings for the body but Rodalgo moves out of range.
Esposito connects with a leg kick. He turned his hip over nicely there.
Rodalgo looks to land a left hand but Esposito moved out of range nicely.
Esposito lands a jab to Rodalgo's midsection.

That's four minutes gone in the round.
Esposito throws a body kick that misses.
Rodalgo ducks low and lands a nice hook to the body of his opponent.
This has been an exciting period of action!
Esposito throws a head kick that misses.
Esposito avoids a punch combination nicely.

The fight moves into the clinch position.
A right hook to the body lands for Rodalgo.
Rodalgo is trying to slow down the pace of the fight but Esposito is keeping busy.
Rodalgo takes a shot to the head.
As the round comes to an end the crowd are showing their appreciation for a great round of action.
Rodalgo tries to throw a body punch but Esposito avoids it by throwing Rodalgo back against the cage.
A body shot lands from Esposito.

And that's the end of the fight!
Frank Esposito comfortably won the final round on my scorecard.
I think Esposito has won this one but let's see whether the judges agree with me. Over to the ring announcer for the scorecards.

Ladies and gentlemen, after 3 rounds of action, we go to the scorecards for a decision.
Judge Donald Grub scores the fight 28:30
Judge Sam Margolis scores the fight 27:30
Judge James Glass scores the fight 28:29

In favor of your winner, by unanimous decision... Frank Esposito!
Frank Esposito tried to hype himself up post fight but didn't word it too well and it ended up with him sounding like a bit of a tool.